'In nature there is a natural order and In life there is a natural order'

Sculptures

Marina Cowdray

Sculpting

Lady Peaceful, 2010

Bronze
53 cm. high

‘She is as the pyramids, shining forth
with
ancient wisdom and knowledge,
She reveals that peace can be found
through silence
Through the continual unfoldment
of life
Wait in silence that I may speak to you
Let my words linger in your spirit
Until you hear the thrill of life’

‘He is no longer a stranger to himself
He embodies courage and strength and
follows his heart
He is free from suffering
He carries wisdom and knowledge
He dances on top of the world, He has
infinite potential’

Freedom, 2009

Bronze on stone coloured patination
22 cm. high; 12 cm. wide

Freedom Pose
‘Every thing is Possible’

The Female Warrior, 2009

72 cm. high; 25 cm. wide at base

‘She embodies strength and courage and
follows her heart
She has the wisdom and the knowledge
Her feminine beauty is transparent to the
world
She is the cycle of birth and rebirth
She forgoes pretence which is the nectar of
the soul’

The Secret Mind/ The Shell Lady, 2009

Bronze
34 cm. high

The Secret Mind/ African Head, 2010

Silver and Bronze
34 cm. high; the base 12 cm. square

‘With her divided soul, she has created her own
identity’

Hidden Identity, 2009

Bronze
34 cm. high; the base 10 cm. square

‘The veil of truth is hidden behind the mask’

The Union, 2010

Bronze
31 cm. high; 19 cm. wide

‘Only when we have have found our own
union
can we be in union with another
We are no longer separated, when we have
found Love
We are one
Both the feminine and the masculine
divine beings without duality’

At One
‘Through prayer we enter our highest
potential
Through our realisation of oneness and
our eternal existence
The truth shall be revealed to you,
through silence’

Cracking the Shell of Ignorance

Give your child a torch to hold, to lighten up the path of the walk called life…
Love and hug your child often and feel in your heart a connection with your child's heart. Unconditional love will flourish....
Be the change you want to see in your child. Don't turn the child into you.
Trust your intuition, feelings are more powerful than responding to your mind.
There is no such thing as routine in nature. nature expresses itself in every given moment let the child be a natural expression of itself.
Take responsibility wholeheartedly for yourself and spend time in silence. Giving yourself peace of mind, that in turn, gives your child peace of mind.
See your self as the child and remember you were the child once. Play with the child and don't take on the burdens of the world. Your child is your world…
Resistance develops from being controlled. Parents are their conditioning, your child will repeat patterns until you understand your true nature.
When you make a mistake….Be able to look your child in the eye and say sorry, please forgive me.
Drop putting yourself in the parenting roll, Be patient and listen fully, there is no past, there is no future, there is only this moment.
Your child is not an expression of you, they are an expression of themselves...
Transparency breeds transparency, open conversations leads to open conversations. Indoctrination of any kind is a limitation, allow your child to find his/her own way
Telephoning a child constantly doesn't make a good parent. Let the child go and let the child do the calling…
Substances fill a void, when there is no void, no substances are required.
Any of your own addictions will be adopted by your child, so think carefully whether you want them to repeat your patterns...
If your child upsets you, recognise your own shortcomings...Love the differences between you and your child. Look at every challenge as a blessing.
Respect and trust in your child breeds success and trust in the world. Encouragement breeds confidence.
Drop the false belief that fitting in and being top of the class and winning a game are priority, this moment is the priority and let that be good enough.
Home is a place of refuge, let the child have the space it needs to be quiet. Make homework fun otherwise don't do it...
Have deep gratitude for your child and forgive them as they are trapped in your own conditioning...
Being the perfect parent is being who you truly are. Your child is your teacher, be open to learn from your child.
Your child will bring you more joy and love than you ever imagined.

The Female Toltec, 2008

Bronze
33 cm. high; 9 cm. wide

The Female Toltec
‘They understood the words that we have
forgotten,
they were scientists and artists, prophecies have
been
foretold that this wisdom and knowledge will
return to us’

The Male Toltec, 2003

Bronze
34 cm. high; 7 cm. wide

Toltecs were a secret nation of people who formed
a secret society to explore and conserve spiritual
knowledge.
This knowledge had to be used carefully as it was
never for personal gain.

Also Lady Peaceful brings together likeminded people on Twitter: @lady_peaceful

Art is an expression of beauty and love which can never be labelled....it is the light that gives the object a life.
All forms are there to draw us back towards love….
This painting by Marina Cowdray was auctioned at a fund raising evening for Resurgence and The Ecologist.

Marina Cowdray had no formal training in art. Inspiration came from her Grandfather, Alister Maynard whose great interests were Arts and Comparative Religions.

Her sculptures were largely inspired by the great religions and myths of the world. Frieda Kahlo from Mexico, who used her art as an expression of her life. Gaudi for his textures and extraordinary creativity. Salvador Dali for his hidden meanings.

Over the years Marina has taken great pleasure in donating her sculptures to various charities.

More recently Marina’s work reflects her internal life. The Baby in the Egg was inspired by the concept of the inner child. She realised the importance of 'Cracking the Shell of Ignorance'. Through sitting quietly she discovered another area of her creative spirit.

The Meditator came to life through wanting to share the spaciousness that arises in the mind and the body through meditation and the feelings of love in the heart.

Having visited the Mayan temples in Peru, the mystique of the Toltec nation captured her imagination. The high head dress was a demonstration of their great wisdom and knowledge. The shell heads were created through a realisation that we are often not who we think we are.

The idea of the Male Warrior came at a time when there were some changes in her life and she recognised that saying ‘YES' to life, gave an inner strength and provoked the feeling of dancing on top of the world.

The Female Warrior was created through discovering her own freedom and the delight in birth and rebirth.

Oxford Mindfulness Centre (OMC) launches first crowdfund pitch to fight mental illness and depression. Hosted by Crowdcube, the pitch has a target of £500,000. It will be used to escalate Oxford Mindfulness Centre’s breakthrough research programmes, and share existing knowledge by recruiting trainers, clinicians, carers and mentors, benefiting existing and future generations of depression sufferers.

See Marina Cowdray speak about mindfulness and further details about Oxford Mindfulness Centre’s fundraising through Crowdcube at www.oxford.crowdcube.com

She is also an International Advisor to the Live to Love charitable foundation

Moon Time by Thomas Poppe
Using the power of lunar cycles to strengthen yourself physically, mentally and emotionally.

The Future is Now by His Holiness Gyalwa Karmapa Ogyen TrinleyDorje
The youthful Karmapa is emerging as one of the great spiritual teachers of the modern age.

Wake Up Now by Stephan Bodian
Both profound and practical, Wake Up Now guides the reader through the intricacies of awakening as only someone who has walked the walk themselves can do. The clarity and compassion it offers are both rare and welcome.

The Art of Happiness by The Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama's commentary is amplified and augmented from a contemporary western perspective by psychiatrist Howard Cutler to make this a genuinely accessible self-help guide.

Tao Te Ching by Lao Tzu
The Tao Te Ching is the classic source book for the spiritual tradition of Taoism.

Some of these 'gems' were shared by a Head who cares greatly for children's spiritual development and the values that they internalise or develop....

The Book of Tibetan Elders
By Sandy JohnsonLife stories and wisdom from the great spiritual masters of Tibet.

Education of Little Tree by Forrest CarterA classic story about life and values

Message from Forever by Marlo MorganA novel about ageless values and simple wisdom

The Prophet by Kahlil Gibran A mystical and powerful book resonating with humanity, compassion and insight into the nature of wisdom.

Also...

Living Presence by Helminski

The Monk who sold his Ferrari by Robin S Sherma

Loving What Is by Katie Byron

The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron

Beyond Religion by The Dalai Lama

Happiness is a Choice by Barry Kaufman
Barry very explicity reveals the options and choices we can all make to find the road to happiness.

The Journeys of Socrates by Dan Millman
An inspirational tale that tells the incredible life story of Sergei Ivanov, affectionately known as Socrates, a sage whose wisdom was destined to change the lives of author Dan Millman and the countless readers of his first book, Way of the Peaceful Warrior.

Buddha by Deepak Chopras

Feelings Buried Alive Never Die by Karol K. Truman

The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz
This four-colour illustrated edition of The Four Agreements celebrates a personal growth classic.

Talks with Ramana Maharshi
Sri Ramana Maharshi had the unique gift of embodying the infinite in an extraordinary manner, and the special ability to direct seekers to the source of enduring happiness.

Rumi Poetry by Coleman Barks
In Coleman Barks′ delightful and wise renderings, these poems will open your heart and soul to the lover inside and out.

Also....

Daughters of Fire by Irena Tweedie

Living as God by Raymond Stewart

Presence by Rupert Spira

I Am by John Klein

You Are Therefore I am: A Declaration of Dependence by Satish Kumar

Beyond the Veil by Burgs

The Way to Love by Anthony de Mello

The Heart of the Enlightened by Anthony de Mello

Walking an Unconditional Path by His Holiness the 12th Gyalwang Drukpa

Emptiness Dancing by Adyashanti

Drawing on the right side of your brain by Betty Edwards

The Presence Process by Michael Brown

The Healing Power of Illness by Dethlefsen and Dahlke

Man's Search For Meaning by Viktor E Frankl
A prominent Viennese psychiatrist before the war, Viktor Frankl was uniquely able to observe the way that both he and others in Auschwitz coped (or didn't) with the experience.

The Inner Reality by Paul Brunton

A New Earth by Eckhart Tolle Eckhart Tolle's A New Earth will be a cornerstone for personal spirituality and self-improvement for years to come, leading readers to a new levels of consciousness and inner peace.

Falling Into Grace by Adyashanti
In the same way that we fall into the arms of a loved one or drop our heads on the pillow before sleep, we can let go into the beauty and truth of who and what we really are.

Zen Mind, Beginner's Mindby Shunryu Suzuki
In the forty years since its original publication, Zen Mind, Beginner's Mind has become one of the great modern Zen classics, much beloved, much reread, and much recommended as the best first book to read on Zen.

I Am That by Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
This collection of the timeless teachings of one of the greatest sages of India, is a testament to the uniqueness of the seer's life and work.

Veronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho
Veronika has everything she could wish for. She is young and pretty, has plenty of boyfriends, a steady job, a loving family.